Canada's aerospace industry has appointed former Quebec premier Jean Charest to chart a new course for the sector.
The Aerospace Industries Association of Canada is putting Charest in the cockpit to coax funding commitments and a long-term plan from the federal government amid fears the country's star is fading.
Canada is not keeping up with sector growth and innovation compared with countries such as France, Germany and the United States, which have long-term strategies in place, said association president Jim Quick.
"We certainly feel that we're not keeping up with the globalization of space. Other countries have been increasing their investments in space," he said in an interview Tuesday.
Quick said the new initiative, called Vision 2025, will push Ottawa to include a long-term aerospace plan in its budget next year.
Charest will lead discussions with government and industry officials in several cities, including Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver and Halifax, culminating in a report on aerospace priorities.
Charest, a former federal cabinet minister who served as premier of Quebec from 2003 to 2012, said he is "excited" about the sector's strength and wants it "to become a global powerhouse...in the face of global risk and uncertainty."
Aerospace leads Canada's manufacturing sector in innovation-related investment, spending over $1.8 billion on research and development in 2017 -- nearly one-quarter of total manufacturing research expenditures, according to the association.
Nonetheless, Canada's investments in aerospace as a percentage of GDP have dropped to 18th globally from eighth place in 1992, according to the association. The sector's manufacturing employment has fallen by five per cent since 2012.
Canada hosts the world's fifth-largest aerospace industry, contributing nearly $25 billion to Canada's economy and almost 190,000 jobs in 2017, the association said.
